The L Program

Getting up at 4:30 two mornings in a row to do chores is not my idea of the ideal goat farmer's life. However, it turned out to be well worth the lost sleep. I left at 6:30 to arrive at the beautiful Devonwood Equestrian Center before 8 a.m. when the L Program began.

The L program is to train people to judge dressage shows from Training through 2nd level. I have no intention of judging... couldn't if I wanted to as there are showing requirements at various levels before you can become a candidate and I don't show. But auditing sounded like a great way to learn what judges look for and for me to understand why they look for what they do... and hence what I should be doing when I ride/train my own horses. I have scribed at schooling shows for L (learner) judges but did not really understand what they were looking for in the various required movements.

I can't say I'm now an expert but I sure did learn a lot in those two days. One of the most surprising things to me was learning about the "Q factor", as presenter and FEI judge Janet Foy called it. Q is for Quality and is the first thing a judge looks at when a horse first enters the ring. A horse built for dressage with the suppleness to perform the movements brilliantly will start out with an advantage over a horse that is not so conformed. Thus my Morgan with his cresty neck and short strides will start out with a lower starting score than my daughter-in-law's warmbloods with their long strides and elevated gaits. My Morgan can up his starting score by doing the movements well and accurately, especially those movements where the "brilliance factor" (another term for Q factor) does not come into play, like rein backs. Jessica's horses can gain points the same way. Our horses can both lose points by, for instance, being tense and hence not having sufficient freedom of motion and responsiveness to the rider's aids (signals). But, all things being equal, the warmblood is going to outscore my Morgan. This rule comes down from the international body in charge of dressage, the FEI, (Federation Equestre Internationale), and carries over into the U.S. Dressage Federation. So now I know.

An amazing amount of material was covered in those two days, plus we have a handbook with much more information that the candidates have to learn before they can pass their exam. I am happy I don't have to take an exam as I'm still a little fuzzy on much of it. But I have a ton of notes to pore over. I did learn things I should have known long ago... like the proper way to do a free walk and what to look for to see if the horse is really stretching over the back as it's supposed to. I also learned to watch the shoulders to tell if a horse is on the forehand (not a good thing). And much more.

Janet Foy was a wonderful presenter, irreverent and witty as well as informative. Her 30 years of judging experience and many years of showing at the top levels of dressage have given her a huge amount of knowledge which she willingly shared... including fascinating asides into the world of dressage not covered in a handbook. I was interested to hear her thoughts on the amazing Totillas, dressage phenomenon who won gold at WEG. Knowing now about the Q factor, I can see that Totillas enters the ring with a very high score which is his to keep or break. Janet explained that although his front and hind legs do not lift evenly at the trot, as we've been taught is correct, his hind legs are drawn so far up and under his body that he has to earn a 10 (highest score possible). The front legs are even higher, perhaps too high, but Janet reminded us that a 10 is not perfect, it's just excellent. And there's no quibbling that Totillas' movements and gaits are excellent.

The L Program has two more sessions coming up, one in February and one in March. Each will be handled by a different FEI level judge. I will be there, eager to soak up whatever I can... even though it means getting up at an ungodly hour.

Elisienne, Triple Crown Winner

Okay, so it wasn't horse racing's triple crown, it was the triple crown of dressage championships in the Pacific Northwest for 2010. This past weekend, Jessica's mare, Lily, as we call Elisienne, won the Northwest Dressage Grand Prix championship, the Great American/USDF (U.S. Dressage Federation) Grand Prix championship, and the Great American/USDF Grand Prix Musical Freestyle championship. What a spectacular showing for Lily and her rider, Nicki Grandia! This came just one week after winning the Oregon Dressage Society Grand Prix championship, giving Lily and Nicki a clean sweep of northwest Grand Prix championships. Grand Prix is the highest level of dressage.

We are all excited about Lily's future in the world of dressage. She will be training with the number one U.S. dressage rider next year, Steffen Peters. Steffen is the best hope of the United States for a medal in the dressage portion of the World Equestrian Games (WEG), which are being held in the U.S. for the first time this year. I leave for WEG in Lexington, Kentucky, on Sunday to watch a whole week of the best dressage in the world. Naturally, I'm rooting for Steffen and his lovely stallion, Ravel.

I did not get to see Lily's wins in Washington last weekend as I was nursing a nasty virus at home, but Jessica, bless her heart, called me after every class with the good news. Now I'm just hoping to be all well in time for WEG. And I'm hoping Johnny stays well so he can do my chores for me the week I'm in Kentucky. Besides the dressage competitions, friend Ruth and I will be watching the cross-country portion of the Eventing competition, taking a tour of Kentucky Bluegrass horse farms, and watching all sorts of spectacular equine exhibitions in the beautiful Kentucky Horse Park. We reserved our tickets, hotel rooms and air travel a year ago. I am already packed... Jessica sent me new tops to wear at WEG for every day I'm there! I guess she knows clothes are not my area of expertise and I usually just wear tee shirts, mostly stained. Now I'll be in style for the most exciting horse competition our country has ever hosted.

I'm taking my camera and will be blogging upon my return. It's an exciting month for dressage from Lily's great wins to the World Equestrian Games! Woohoo!

Shannon Peters Dressage Clinic!

The Shannon Peters dressage clinic at Traumhof was fantastic. Since it was mostly upper level horses and professionals, I didn't think there would be much that I, a rank amateur, could use with my own low level horses. Instead, I learned more than I ever have from any clinic, including those with riders of my ilk. Shannon is a remarkable person. Not only did she immediately spot where each horse and rider needed improvement, she explained clearly and simply how to make that improvement. I came home with a page full of notes and a head full of ideas to try with my own horses... should I ever have time to ride.

Above left is the flashy Grand Prix horse Pablo, ridden by Mike Osinski. On the right is Jessica's lovely Grand Prix mare, Elisienne, better known as Lily, ridden by Nicki Grandia.

It was also fun, of course, to see grandson Ian who is growing up quickly. He loves selling food and beverages at the concession stand they operate as a fund raiser during the clinic. Now, at almost nine, he can pretty much do it all himself, including make change. He stayed with his job all day both days. (I, on the other hand, watched the clinic all day both days.) When all was done Sunday afternoon, Ian and I played games. The kid never seems to get tired. Well, he looks tired here but he was faking it.

This was my first time to see Luna, Jessica's new foal. What a beautiful, friendly girl she is... and a big one for only three months old!









Kevin, Jessica and Ian, plus all the boarders at the barn, have been working for weeks to get the place looking terrific... flowers planted everywhere... lovely hanging baskets.. everything mowed and trimmed and weeded and pressure washed and tidy. Traumhof looked beautiful. A perfect showcase for the lovely horses.
Johnny managed to do chores while I was gone, but his back did not cooperate as well as it had for my Ashland trip. It's time for me to stay home and let him recuperate... before he heads out south to visit the Calif. kids and north to visit the Wash. kids. He can ride Amtrak both directions and enjoys that method of travel. But first, he seems determined to get the new goat barn project underway. We will hire the construction, but he is designing and planning. It looks like the long-awaited goat barn may actually become a reality.

I mowed the lawn on this, my first day home, while working on my riding skills (in my head). Shannon Peters' voice counseled me to sit my bum in the saddle, don't lean forward, tighten my abs, roll my wrists to soften my horse's jaw, keep my hands low, elbows at sides, think forward, and volte, volte, volte. The riding mower does not, I discovered, do voltes (small circles) well. It just can't bend properly from nose to tail.

California! Part One - The Horse Show

Too excited to sleep the night before my big trip south, I gave up, got up, and left at 2 Thursday morning, arriving in Sacramento 12 hours later in time for Lily's first class. Here she is in the warm-up arena with Nicki riding.
Thus commenced a learning experience for all of us. For me: learning the route between Ruth's house in Folsom, where I was staying, the hotel in Sacramento where Kevin and Jessica and Ian were staying, and the Rancho Murietta show grounds where Jessica's horses were staying. (Wandering around lost one late evening, before I learned the route well enough, my little Honda Civic Hybrid was hit, fortunately gently, by a big Ford Explorer. My car now has a dented side.)

K and J learned the routes to Emergency Rooms as one health crisis after another befell their family. They now know where to go and not to go for ER treatment in the Sacramento area. J turned out to have a painful allergic reaction "like hives in the eye" said the doc, and Ian likely a 24 hour flu bug -- although they never had a diagnosis or any help from that ER - definitely the one *not* to go to. Fortunately (at least from my point of view), I had two fun afternoons with Ian before his bug caught him. Here he is hamming it up at the show with Doug, Nicki's mascot rubber ducky.

The show itself was a five ring circus -- literally: there were five show rings. Huge water trucks and tractors groomed one ring while horses performed their dressage tests in a neighboring ring. Dogs of every breed on leashes accompanied owners everywhere: I hadn't seen some of those breeds since the last Westminster Dog Show I watched on television. Only one of the five arenas was indoors and that one had five judges' stands blocking the view and two hard metal bleachers, making the show not terribly spectator friendly. Thank goodness the weather was good the days we were there: I cannot imagine riding in one of those outdoor arenas in the driving rain and ferocious wind that hit on the last day of the show... thankfully after our horses and people had left. This show was about serious competition, not about coddling riders or spectators.

Jessica's horses performed well considering their lack of big show experience. This was only Rudi's second show anywhere and Lily's first CDI (international dressage competition). Lily performed her freestyle for the very first time at this show. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6D8lrJlfJI They will soon have more experience as they and Nicki left on Sunday for San Diego to train with Steffen Peters (!) before the even bigger Del Mar show at the end of April. (For those who don't know, Steffen is about the biggest name there is right now in dressage.)

Pictured is Rudi, just after finishing his 2nd level test and Lily, leaving the arena with her first ribbon earned in international competition. She's on her way now!





Back at K&J&I's home, Traumhof, in Washington, Jessica's mare Wirago foaled the day they arrived in Sacramento. At first the baby was fine, but then had a bit of a set back and was taken, at Jessica's direction, to a vet hospital. Thankfully, the foal was soon well again and was back home at Traumhof before K&J&I arrived on Sunday evening.

The worries about the foal added to J & I's health crises and the show commotion made for a stressful few days for all of us. I was glad to retreat in the evenings to friend Ruth's quiet home nestled in the woods close to the Sacramento river. Two mornings we walked along the trail that runs for miles through the state park that borders the river on both sides. Birds were everywhere. The Red-shouldered Hawks were again nesting in the same tree, same nest, where I saw them last year when I visited Ruth. And a Black Phoebe was flycatching in the same area of the riverside. A White-tailed Kite flew over as we walked. Many warblers were singing, along with other identified and unidentified birds. I had my first view of what I presume must be a Nuttall's Woodpecker... too bad it didn't stick around long enough for me to get a photo.

The drive from Ruth's house in Folsom to the Rancho Murietta show grounds was through miles of oak savannah pastures, green this time of year, dotted with granite outcroppings, the air filled with the liquid song of Western Meadowlarks. It was a lovely drive with little traffic.


Sunday mid-day, I left Ruth's house for the second leg of my trip... San Carlos and son Steve and family. That story I'll tell next time.